A message from the Headteacher

Dear Parents and Carers,

We have had a lovely day in school today, marking Comic Relief’s Red Nose Day. The children have entered enthusiastically into the spirit of the day and looked wonderful dressed as their very own ‘Mister Men’ or ‘Little Miss.’. Red Nose Day complements our values assemblies this this half term, where we have been focusing on ‘Empathy’.

Last week we were very proud of Year 4, who went to St. James’s Church to take part in a ‘Unity Service’ with a number of other Stourbridge Primary Schools. Our children presented a piece of drama called ‘Rainbow People’ which explored the theme of working together to share our resources to make the world a better place. The children came across very confidently, gave a polished performance and enjoyed the occasion.

We are looking forward to seeing you at Parent Consultations on Tuesday, when you will receive your child’s mid-point report. As previously explained, we are changing how these meetings run (see below). Please ensure that you are ready for your appointment by arriving five minutes before the time you have selected. We understand that sometimes unavoidable delays happen and if this is the case, you will be offered another appointment time later in the day, should one be available.

Mrs Hunt, our Acting SENCo, will be available for any parents and carers who would like to speak to her after they have met with the class teacher. This will be on a ‘drop-in basis’ in the Intervention Room with each meeting lasting 10 minutes. If a longer appointment is needed, this can be arranged with Mrs Hunt.

Kind regards

Mrs D Hudson

Headteacher

Arrangements for Mid-Point Reports and Parent/Carer Consultations

To try and avoid delays and for the welfare of staff, we are organising our appointments differently this year.

  • Please do not bring your children with you. Staff feel able to have a much more open discussion, without the children present.
  • All meetings with teachers will take place in the hall.
  • Please ensure that you are ready at your appointment - Arrive five minutes before the time you have selected.
  • You will be directed into the hall at the appointment time.
  • At the end of the allocated 10 minute slot the bell will ring and you are asked to leave the hall via the one-way system.
  • You are invited to view your child’s work in their classroom between 3.30 pm and 6.00 pm on Wednesday 22nd March, but teachers will not be present to discuss their progress with you at this time.

Easter Events

Towards the end of term we will be holding a number of Easter Events including our traditional Easter Assemblies. To comply with Fire Regulations entrance will be by ticket only.

  • Thursday 30th March 2.00pm – Key Stage 2 Easter Assembly.
  • Friday 31st March 9.00am – Reception and Key Stage 1 Easter Bonnet Parade – we look forward to seeing your creations!

For both events, one ticket per child will be issued in the first instance. Please return any unwanted tickets to school. If you require an additional ticket, for the Key Stage 2 assembly, please contact the school office.

In addition Key Stage 2 children can enter our competition to decorate a hard boiled egg.  Please bring the eggs to the school on Wednesday 29th March and take them to the classroom. The eggs will then be taken to the Bungalow where they will be on display after school for children, parents and carers to see.

News From The Governors

This week the governors met for the termly Local Authority Meeting. It was a packed agenda where governors discussed amongst other things, staffing and the challenges we face with the budget for the new financial year. We know that the changes due to maternity leave has been a concern for some parents, but governors were reassured that the school is working hard to minimise the impact on children’s learning. As we look to September we trust that we will see more stability.

As mentioned in the last newsletter we now have two Co-opted Governor vacancies and are particular interested to hear about anyone you know of who may be interested in supporting their local community school and has skills in HR or building management. Please speak to Mrs Hudson if you know of someone suitable.

Sports Round Up

A team of nine Year 5 & 6 pupils took part in the School Games Netball Tournament on Tuesday 7th March. Despite only training for a few hours across two weeks, the children did amazingly well and reached the semi-finals, where they unfortunately beaten in a close game by Howley Grange, who later went on to win the tournament. Netball will be one of our key sports to build on during the Summer term.
 
The snow didn't stop our girls on Wednesday the 8th March for the World's Biggest Girls Football Session to which we held a match on the school playground.

Next up we have the Year 5 & 6 boys Cluster Schools Football Tournament on Wednesday 22nd and Wednesday 29th March at Redhill School. Good look boys!

Mr Lamb

Attendance and Punctuality

 

This Weeks attendance 

Whole School - 96.83%

Reception - 99.00%

Year 1 – 98.67%

Year 2 – 100.00%

Year 3 – 92.86%

Year 4 – 96.67%

Year 5 – 99.33%

Year 6 – 91.00%

Well done Year 2!

We continue to monitor attendance on a regular basis and the governors discussed the attendance report at their meeting this week. It is good to see the number of children who have Persistent Absence (attendance of less than 90%) is falling. Please remember that there is lots of help to promote good attendance.

  • We can arrange a meeting in school to discuss concerns and together, agree on strategies and support that we can put in place.
  • For ongoing medical concerns, we can make a referral (with your agreement) to the school nurse, who can make contact with yourself to offer support.
  • With your consent, we can make a referral to Early Help, which can help both children and families with varying needs. Early Help is here to find out what is working well for families and what areas they might be worried about; it can help to build on families’ strengths and identify any needs where support might be needed. It is an approach that brings people together from different teams and services who work together with the whole family. The main focus is to improve outcomes for children.

 If you feel you need any support from school to help improve your child’s attendance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Safeguarding

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Mrs Hudson is the Designated Safeguarding Lead and any concerns should be shared with her or the Deputy Safeguarding Leads – Mrs Hadley and Miss Beddoes.  Where child protection concerns are raised, the school has a statutory duty to refer these concerns to children’s social care.

We have received some information this week from the Child Accident Prevention Trust regarding Rogue on-line sellers.

Rogue online sellers risk children’s lives

Last year, 91 types of toy were recalled because they were dangerous. And a report from the British Toy and Hobby Association found that, of 101 dangerous toys withdrawn from sale on online marketplaces, 65 seemingly identical toys were still on sale a year later.

Despite this, our new research reveals that 70% of parents never check to see if a product has been recalled and 93% don’t know how to check.

That’s why we’ve set up a new advice hub where parents and practitioners can check if the toys and childcare products they’re buying are safe.
 
Check out our new advice hub
 

With mounting financial pressures, parents are increasingly searching online for better prices than in the shops. But only 13% always check out who the seller is or where they are based, increasing the risk of inadvertently buying dangerous products for their children.

So we’re offering practical tips on how to swerve rogue online sellers, alongside advice on who to call if you’re worried that you’ve bought something dangerous and visual aids to share with families.

 
Access our safety tips and resources
 

And follow us on social media to become a savvier shopper.

Facebook
Instagram
Twitter

We’re supporting the Office for Product Safety and Standards campaign to encourage people to buy safe products from reliable sources. Find out more here

Don’t miss out. For free safety advice and resources direct to your inbox, sign up here.

 
 
 
Copyright © 2022 Child Accident Prevention Trust, All rights reserved.

What's Happening Next Week

Monday • Panini Premier League Cards Club
Tuesday • Forest School for Years 1 and 4
• Year 4 Whole Class Clarinet Lesson
Wednesday • KS2 Football Team Training
• Cluster Schools Football Mini League Tournament @ Redhill School
Thursday • Choir (Key Stage 2)
• KS2 Girls Football Team Training
Friday • Year 3 Swimming

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